U.S. applications filed for home loans last week rose a seasonally adjusted 21% from the preceding week as average 30-year mortgage rates held near 5%, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.
The rise was spurred by a 26.3% hike in demand for refinancing as purchase loan requests increased 10.3%, said the group, whose index for the previous week came in at -10.9%.
The group said demand shot up as borrowers were pushing to lock in rates before they climb later in the year.
However, the outlook for U.S. markets remained dim, despite the data. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a drop of 0.36%, S&P 500 futures pointed to a decline of 0.48% and Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a fall of 0.54%.